SB2132 - Relating to the Rural Pathway Excellence Partnership (R-PEP) program, including funding for that program under the Foundation School Program.

  2025S0158-1 03/03/25     By: Hinojosa of Hidalgo S.B. No. 2132     A BILL TO BE ENTITLED   AN ACT   relating to the Rural Pathway Excellence Partnership (R-PEP)   program, including funding for that program under the Foundation   School Program.          BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF TEXAS:          SECTION 1.  Section 29.912, Education Code, is amended by   adding Subsection (c-1) to read as follows:           (c-1)     A school district that has participated in the program   may continue to participate in the program regardless of the number   of students in average daily attendance in the district for the   current school year.          SECTION 2.  Section 48.118, Education Code, is amended by   amending Subsections (a) and (f) and adding Subsections (a-1),   (a-2), (a-3), and (g) to read as follows:          (a)   Subject to Subsection (a-1), for [ For ] each full-time   equivalent student in average daily attendance in grades 9 through   12 in a college or career pathway offered through a partnership   under the Rural Pathway Excellence Partnership (R-PEP) program   under Section 29.912 that meets the requirements under Subsection   (g) , a school district is entitled to an allotment equal to the   basic allotment, or, if applicable, the sum of the basic allotment   and the allotment under Section 48.101 to which the district is   entitled, multiplied by:                (1)  1.15 if the student is educationally   disadvantaged; or                (2)  1.11 if the student is not educationally   disadvantaged.           (a-1)     A school district is eligible to receive an allotment   under Subsection (a) only if the district has adopted a school   calendar for that school year that provides for at least:                 (1)  175 instructional days; or                 (2)     five instructional days per week for the majority   of the school year.           (a-2)     The commissioner may waive the requirement under   Subsection (a-1) for a school district for the 2025-2026 school   year on application by the district if the district demonstrates   that the district has adopted a school calendar for the 2026-2027   school year that complies with that subsection. This subsection   expires September 1, 2026.           (a-3)     Notwithstanding Subsection (a), a school district   described by Section 29.912(c-1) may receive funding under this   section for up to 110 percent of the number of students who   qualified under Subsection (a) for the school year immediately   preceding the school year in which the district's enrollment first   reached 1,600 or more.          (f)  The total amount of state funding for allotments and   outcomes bonuses under this section may not exceed $5 million per   year. If the total amount of allotments and outcomes bonuses to   which school districts are entitled under this section exceeds the   amount permitted under this subsection, the agency shall allocate   state funding to districts under this section in the following   order:                (1)  allotments under Subsection (a) for which school   districts participating in partnerships prioritized under Section   29.912(h) are eligible;                (2)  allotments under Subsection (a) for which school   districts that entered into a memorandum of understanding or letter   of commitment regarding a multidistrict pathway partnership, as   defined by commissioner rule, before May 1, 2023, are eligible;                (3)  allotments under Subsection (a) for which school   districts that have entered into a performance agreement under   Section 29.912 with a coordinating entity that is an institution of   higher education, as defined by Section 61.003, are eligible; and                (4)  allotments under Subsection (a) for which school   districts with the highest percentage of students who are   educationally disadvantaged, in descending order, are eligible[ ;   and                [ (5)     outcomes bonuses under Subsection (c) for which   school districts with the highest percentage of students who are   educationally disadvantaged, in descending order, are eligible ].           (g)     To be eligible for funding under this section, a   partnership under the Rural Pathway Excellence Partnership (R-PEP)   program under Section 29.912 must offer at least one of the   following programs of study through in-person instruction, remote   instruction, or a hybrid of in-person and remote instruction:                 (1)     computer programming and software development or   cybersecurity; or                 (2)  a specialized skilled trade, such as:                       (A)  plumbing and pipefitting;                       (B)  electrical;                       (C)  welding;                       (D)  diesel and heavy equipment;                       (E)  aviation maintenance; or                       (F)  applied agricultural engineering.          SECTION 3.  Sections 48.118(b), (c), and (d), Education   Code, are repealed.          SECTION 4.  Section 29.912, Education Code, as amended by   this Act, applies beginning with the 2025-2026 school year.          SECTION 5.  (a) Except as provided by Subsection (b) or (c)   of this section, this Act takes effect immediately if it receives a   vote of two-thirds of all the members elected to each house, as   provided by Section 39, Article III, Texas Constitution. If this   Act does not receive the vote necessary for immediate effect, this   Act takes effect September 1, 2025.          (b)  Except as provided by Subsection (c) of this section,   Section 48.118, Education Code, as amended by this Act, takes   effect September 1, 2025.          (c)  Section 48.118(g), Education Code, as added by this Act,   takes effect September 1, 2027.